New Navy Ship Named
Secretary of the Navy Gordon R. England has named the Navy’s next amphibious transport dock ship in honor of the city of Anchorage, Alaska. “Anchorage is an important seaport and one of our nation’s great cities. For many years thousands of young men and women from Alaska have stepped forward to serve America as a sailor or Marine. The warm hospitality of the people of Anchorage has always welcomed the fleet. The USS Anchorage will project American power to the far corners of the earth and support the cause of freedom well into the 21st century," England said.Northrop Grumman Ship Systems, Avondale Operations in New Orleans, La., will build Anchorage. The 684-foot long amphibious transport dock ship will carry a crew of about 360 Navy sailors and 700 Marines. The ship will be used to transport and land Marines, as well as, their equipment and supplies in support of amphibious assault, special operations, and expeditionary warfare missions. These personnel and supplies will be delivered via embarked landing craft air cushions, conventional landing craft or amphibious vehicles and can be augmented by helicopters or vertical take off and landing aircraft. Anchorage will play a vital role in the success of the Navy/Marine Corps team. It will carry joint combat forces to the fight with increased lift capacity, superior command and control capabilities and improved ship survivability. It will give expeditionary strike groups greater speed, agility and reach, and will help us to dominate the near land battle space. These ships incorporate substantial quality of service improvements to include sit-up berths, a ship services mall, an enhanced fitness facility and a state of the art learning resource center. The previous USS Anchorage served for nearly forty years, including recent service in the Global War on Terrorism. It was decommissioned in 2003.